


Next Generation

by WriterRose



Category: Xiaolin Showdown (Cartoon)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-21
Updated: 2017-03-04
Packaged: 2018-09-25 16:20:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 6,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9828938
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WriterRose/pseuds/WriterRose
Summary: Six years after the fall of the Heylin forces at the hands of the Xiaolin Dragons, a new generation of warriors are chosen to protect the world when the forces of evil rise once again.After years of training, Boris is finally ready to lead a new team of Xiaolin Dragons and protect the world, once again.If only he and his new teammates could get along...





	1. Prologue & the Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> So I'm usually against stories with OCs but some authors can do them really well so I thought I'd give it a shot. I really wanted to imagine what the Xiaolin team would be like after the original cast had grown up. This story is about Ping Pong (known as Boris) leading his own team after the other main characters have grown up and become Dragons.
> 
> Characters from both XS and XC will be appearing in this story.
> 
> Technically takes place 6 years after the end of Chronicles but doesn't really follow the plot of it. Just borrows certain characters/story lines. None of the OCs are made to be like a gf or bf of any existing characters nor are they self-inserts. I'm going to actually try to develop some characters here.

Many centuries years ago, the legendary Xiaolin Dragon Grandmaster Dashi, a warrior with the ability to harness lightning and use magic, created the first Shen Gong Wu, a mystical object that could grant the user extraordinary powers. He gifted these objects to the humans of the world so they could defend themselves from the forces of evil; the Heylin side.

In creating these magical items, Grandmaster Dashi had angered the evil Heylin Witch Wuya. Wuya enjoyed tormenting the weak and the innocent but now Dashi had given power to those who once had none. Outraged, Wuya tried to take possession of all the Shen Gong Wu to grant herself even more power and leave humans defenceless but Dashi stood in her way. Fighting over the Shen Gong Wu caused an epic battle to ensue; this clash was known as the first Xiaolin Showdown and the winner would take possession of the Shen Gong Wu.

However, Wuya was no match for Grandmaster Dashi and in the end the magician won the Wu and locked the Heylin Witch away in a magical puzzle box. In order to ensure that the Wu would cause nobody else harm, Dashi hid the Shen Gong Wu all over the world, only to be found by those who needed them.

1500 years later, the Shen Gong Wu activated when Wuya was freed from her prison. The Heylin forces awoken but so did the forces of good; the Xiaolin Warriors. They traveled the world and dedicated their lives to finding the Shen Gong Wu and keeping them out of the hands of evil.

In a battle that would be remembered for eons, the Xiaolin Dragons of the Wind, Earth, Fire, and Water locked away the evil Heylin forces of Wuya the Witch, Chase Young the Man-Beast, and the Seed of Evil, Hannibal Roy Bean. The Dragons then decided to cause all but a handful of the Shen Gong Wu to go offline and once again hid the remaining across the globe.

However, evil cannot be locked away forever and the Heylin forces will once again awaken. When that time comes, the Wu will reactive and a new generation of Warriors will rise to ensure that good prevails. 

That time has now come.  
\-----------------

In a firm stance outside of the gardens, a young boy in red robes took a deep breath and focused on the object in front of him. He focused on this object solely. Nothing else could gain his attention or break his focus as nothing else was more important than what was now in front of him. The young monk was so focused on the object that he did not hear the clank of large boots stomp through the Temple walkway until he was greeted by a familiar presence. 

“Hey there, Chrome Dome.” came the cocky greeting that didn’t contain much malice these days. “What’re you doing?”

“Greetings, brother Jack.” Boris greeted back, not breaking his stance by even a fraction of an inch. 

Lazily leaning on one of the temple columns, Jack spoke “I know I’m gonna regret asking this, but is there any reason as to why you’re staring at a plant?” 

Indeed the boy was staring at a potted plant. A lily to be exact. 

“I am training my Xiaolin Element.” the European boy informed.

“Uh-huh…” the older male voiced, sounding skeptical. “And how’s that going?”

Finally, the boy seemed to deflate. “Truthfully, not so well.” he admitted.

Fighting the urge to cackle in amusement, Jack instead walked closer to the boy and crouched down, observing the potted plant placed on the garden wall. “What seems to be the problemo?” the redhead questioned, as if asking about a malfunctioning car.

“I caused it to sprout from the seed and then I caused the sprout to bloom, but I can not get it to do much else.” he informed.

“Hm.” Jack hummed, squinting at the pink lily. “Can you make it move?”

Instead of answering verbally, Boris gave a shift of his hands, causing the flower to move in the pot and turn to face the sun, basking in the rays of light. 

“Wow...” Jack breathed. “That's pretty pathetic.”

“I know!” Boris said in dismay. “I used to be able to make entire plants - entire trees! - unroot themselves and walk around. Now I can only point them in the direction of the sun.” he finished with a sad sigh.

“Did you try asking nicely?” the American joked as he turned back to the younger boy with a grin.

“Yes.” Boris informed in a pout, believing the question to be a serious one. Jack rolled his eyes. 

“Well, don’t worry. I’m sure you’ll get it.” he comforted. Then as an afterthought he added, “Or not. Who knows?”

Deflating in defeat, Boris slumped down and sat on the stone bench. “I understand that the need for Xiaolin abilities has been much lower these past few years than it used to be, but I don’t know why _my_ abilities are so weak. Your’s work so flawlessly.”

Inspecting his black-painted finger nails, Jack answered confidently, “Both _are_ true.”

After moving closer to the fellow Dragon (in-training) unexpectedly, Boris grabbed ahold of the man’s black jacket in a desperate grasp. “I do not understand, brother Jack!” he cried. “How are your powers not weakened?”

“Woah, woah, hands off the merchandise, Cue Ball.” the pale man commanded. Reluctantly, after being wrenched away, Boris released his grip on the leather material. With a huff, Jack brushed invisible dust off his jacket and flipped the collar. “Thank you. And as for your crazed question, I don’t know. I work with my hands a lot.” he informed sticking out said appendage. Forming a finger gun, he pretended to fire, causing Boris’ wire-framed glasses to fly off his face and float above his head, out of his reach. As the short boy tried to grab his spectacles, Jack continued. “Also, my powers didn’t awaken when yours did - I took a while to join the goody-goody side if you remember. So maybe I didn’t, I dunno, use them all up.”

“But that does not make sense!” the young monk exclaimed. With another eyeroll, Jack released the glasses and let them fall back onto the younger’s face. Adjusting the crooked lenses, Boris continued. “Xiaolin powers don’t just...dry up! They’re not a fountain.”

“Heck if I know, Cheeseball. Why don’t you go ask the _Master_ about all this?”

“No, I can’t just _ask_ him! What would he say?!” the boy cried. “He could kick me out. Shun me. I could not take the rejection if I am defective...”

After pursing his lips and squinting his eyes at the boy, scrutinizing him, Jack’s lips formed a sly grin. “I’m gonna tell him.”

“ _Quelle?_ No!”

“It’s the _good_ thing to do.” he jeered as he made a turn to walk away.

“Not, brother Jack! I’m begging you!” he pleaded, falling to his knees dramatically, once more grabbing onto the man’s leather jacket, much to Jack’s annoyance. “You must not tell the Master.”

“Tell me what?” 

Quicker than a flash, both heads then whipped up to look behind them and see the newcomer. They both froze into tense positions, as if they were naughty children who got caught with their hand in the cookie jar. 

Standing innocently in the doorway was the Master, his posture perfect. A ramrod-straight back, elbows bent at a 90 degree angle, hands concealed underneath his elegant blue robes with black trim, and a small dragon resting comfortably on him, curled around his slim shoulders.

“S-Shifu Omi...” Boris stuttered out, but he found that was all he could say. The young man mutely made his way over to the two monks, a polite and curious smile on his face.

“Hello, Little Gecko.” Master Omi greeted with a smile. “How is your training?”

“G-Great!” he exclaimed a little too-quickly. “I’m making improvement.” Well, it wasn’t a lie. A week ago he wasn’t able to cause the plant to move. “My Lotus Strike is no longer landing an eighth of an inch to the left.” Now that was a lie. Dojo and Jack seemed to have caught it - as they both were giving him criticizing looks - but Omi was as oblivious as ever.

“That is most excellent!” Omi commented with a big grin. He reached down and gave Boris a pat on the head. “Good work, Little Gecko. Keep this up and you will reach the rank of a Dragon in no time!”

“Yeah. In _no_ time at all.” Jack chimed in. “It’ll be so quick in fact, it’ll be like it never really even happened. At all.” the grown-man teased.

Dojo casted Jack a frown, placing his hands on his hips - well, waist or whatever it was he had - in a disapproving manner as Boris tried to keep himself from deflating once again. Luckily he didn’t have to keep up the act as Omi turned his grey eyes to Jack.

“Didn’t I tell you to escort your superior warrior to the main hall?” he questioned with a raise of his eyebrow. The cocky grin on Jack’s face vanished and was replaced by a frown. Dojo gave an amused snort and earned a grin from Omi and a glare from Jack.

“Can it, lizard.” the redhead snapped. He then turned to the younger man. “He was training and it didn’t want to interrupt his mojo.”

Omi gave a look that said _’I’m not buying it. You forgot didn’t you?’_ and shook his head. “Very well. You have did-hads to work on, don’t you?” It was clear that Omi needed to have a conversation with Boris and would rather he not be here for it.

“Okay one, it’s ‘do-dads’. Two, they’re not ‘do-dads’ everything I create is a marvelous piece of design genius, _Master_ Cue Ball.” he defended.

“Eh, tomato-potato.” Omi replied, sounding uninterested.

Jack gave a loud annoyed groan and mumbled “I’m not even gonna bother…” as he stormed away. He had a security system to fix anyway.

Staring after the American in amusement, Omi then turned his gaze back to Boris, placing an arm around his shoulder and leading him out of the gardens. “Come now, Little Gecko. I have something to tell you.”

“What is it, Shifu Omi?” the younger monk questioned. 

“I’m afraid the news I have is not good, but it does have a metallic outer layer surrounding it.”

Boris stared at the Master perplexed. He turned to Dojo. The small dragon rubbed his chin, contemplative. He snapped his fingers. “There’s a silver lining.” he clarified. 

“Oh.” Boris simply replied. He turned back to Omi. “Well, what is it?” 

“All will be revealed in two time.” Omi replied aloofly, vaguely reminding Boris of the Xiaolin Master that came before his current. Well, maybe without the errors in his statements. “But first I must show you something.”

Without further questioning, Omi burst open the doors to the Library to reveal three teenagers of various backgrounds sitting in the front of the room. At Omi’s loud dramatic entrance, all heads turned to them.

“The good news,” Omi started. “is that the forces of evil have reawakened. The bad news is that you have new training-mates.” 

Boris blinked in confusion at the other young, startled faces that were in the near distance. 

“Uh, don’t you mean it the other way around?” Dojo questioned.

Omi gave the Ancient Guardian on his shoulder a look from the corner of his eye. “I know what I said.”


	2. A Single Swoop

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic will be under 10 chapters. If all goes well, I plan on making this a series of under-10-chapters fics and further explore this world and these characters, both original and canon. 
> 
> Also before I post a new chapter, I make sure I have at least started or gotten halfway through the one immediately following it so I don't leave people hanging for too long.
> 
> ( One more thing! My OCs' nationalities/home countries will be revealed next chapter but see if you can take a guess as to where they're from. The countries may or may not have something to do with their elements. ;) )

“The good news,” Omi started. “is that the forces of evil have reawakened. The bad news is that you have new training-mates.” 

“Uh, don’t you mean it the other way around?” Dojo questioned.

“I know what I said.”

Boris blinked in confusion a few times and then gave himself a few moments to process what he had just heard. Firstly, the forces of evil have reawakened? Second, he had training-mates? What was wrong with the other monks or even Jack?

He looked to the newcomers in trepidation. There were three of them; two girls and one boy. The boy had dark skin and short black hair in tight curls. He appeared to be in his early teens - around his age - and held a bored expression and seemed to be criticizing Boris. Nervously, he diverted his eyes and landed on one of the females. This one had long dark hair tied back into a braid. She appeared to be a little younger than him, as she was quite small but her nervousness might’ve made her appear younger than she is. When she and Boris met eyes, she quickly looked away. Boris then decided to study the last newcomer. She was an Asian girl with short spiky hair that appeared to be dyed wild colors. Her plump cheeks spread into a large, friendly grin when she locked eyes with the European boy. 

“Training-mates?” Boris finally questioned.

“ _That’s_ the thing you’re asking about?” Dojo inquerried lowly to himself.

“Yes!” Omi answered, joyful once more. “New recruits. Dragons in-training, to be precise.” he elaborated as he pushed Boris further into the room so they were in front of the three other teens.

“New Dragons?” Boris found himself asking. “How many Dragons are there supposed to be?”

“I don’t know.” Omi shrugged. Boris, as well as the other children, looked at their Master in disbelief. At their unimpressed faces and a nudge from Dojo, Omi decided it was best to continue speaking. “There could be an infinite number of Dragons for all we know.”

“But what about the natural elements? I thought only one Dragon could exist for an element and last I checked all the spots were filled.” Boris wasn’t quite sure why his tone was so biting. Normally he was very pleased to meet new people; he was thrilled to meet the Dragons for the first time all those years ago. But maybe that was because he was so young? He was only eight at the time...

“It’s not actually so cut and dry, kid.” Dojo spoke. “Wind isn’t actually a Chinese element, it’s actually a Western one, but there’s a Dragon for that.” he reasoned.

“Yes, exactly.” Omi agreed. “I once asked the same of Master Fung when I first met my teammates many years ago. He told me that–”

“The world evolves and the universe follows suit.” the dark-skinned girl - who Boris recognized to be Indian by the Bindi on her forehead - strangely answered.

“Yes. Very good, little monk.” Omi complimented, not at all phased that this girl had somehow known what he was going to say (Boris also couldn't stop the ugly feeling that passed through him when he heard Omi use the endearing term for someone other than him). “Back in the days of the great Grandmaster Dashi, Dragons were only chosen for the elements found in the Wu Xing Cycle and were solely from China. However when people started to travel and the world became more connected, Dragons were chosen from around the world and eventually a new, Western element unlocked. Even Dashi himself didn't wield a Wu Xing element. In fact, no one is the last 1500 years has been known to wield the same element as Dashi. But now, all that is changing.”

“But...why?” asked the Asian girl in clear English that wasn’t muddled by an accent like the Indian girl. “I thought all the evil was locked away by the Dragons?” Actually, there appeared to be an accent, as the second word she spoke in that sentence sounded a little strange to Boris, but he couldn’t quite place it...

“There has been a shift in universe.” the eldest monk answered the girl. “When my friends and I locked away the forces of evil, we foolishly caused for the world to become unbalanced. Which is not good.”

“You gotta take the good with the bad?” the dark skinned boy now spoke up in a distinctly Hispanic accent. Boris wasn’t even going to try to guess which of the hundreds of countries he could be from… “Like, uh, yin-yang?”

“Correct. The Heylin forces will return and since so many new potential Dragons have awoken - as well as there already being four actual Dragons - we can only assume that–”

“The worse has yet to come…” Boris finished for him, his face slowly paling in horror at the realization. 

“Precisely.” Omi confirmed solemnly. “But, there is good to come from this.” he started more brightly. “The Shen Gong Wu have now reactivated.”

“Speak for yourself!” Dojo quipped. “I’ve been breaking out like there’s no tomorrow…” the dragon grumbled as he gestured to his reddened skin revealed underneath flakey scales. The young monks faces all twisted into looks of various disgust. 

“Because the balance was greatly upset, the world responded by creating four new potential Xiaolin Dragons.” Omi started, ignoring Dojo’s oddities - immune from dealing with it for countless years. He placed an arm around Boris’ shoulders once more and gestured to each of the new teenagers. “I would like for you to meet the Dragon of Lightning, Jose–”

“ _Hola._ ” the dark skinned boy greeted nonchalantly.

“Anna, the Dragon of Light–”

“Hey-ya.” came the friendly response from the Asian girl.

“–and Vaishnavi, the Dragon of Spirits.”

“ _Namaste_.” the Indian girl spoke, placing her palms together and giving a slight bow.

“They will join you on your quests.” he finished. All three teens held various expressions. Vaishnavi still looked nervous, Jose looked criticizing, and Anna seemed to be thrilled. Boris couldn’t help but feel perplexed. Outside of Lightning - which was wielded by Grandmaster Dashi - he never came across any of these elements in his studies… 

“Alright…” Boris started reluctantly. “I understand, but why are you not going on these missions, Shifu Omi?”

“Or the other Dragons?” Anna asked hesitantly, as if she were afraid of the answer or unsure if she should even be speaking. “Wouldn’t it be better if, ya know, more qualified people were going on these, uh, quests?” she finished unsure.

“ _Habla por ti mismo..._ ” Jose grumbled to himself in Spanish, but Boris had understood.

“The Dragons have other responsibilities.” the oldest male responded. “Besides, we have already gone on our journeys and obtained our ranks. It is time for you to do the same. Anna and Jose are Trainees, so they will need much guidance.”

Jose looked none too pleased at this fact but Anna seemed unaffected. If anything, she looked excited by what was to come.

“Vaishnavi has already gone through some training at a different temple and her skills are very advance. She will be starting as an Apprentice.” he continued.

Anna looked at the younger girl in amazement and Jose in a mixture of shock and annoyance. Vaishnavi blushed and looked away embarrassedly. 

“And as the only one on the team to have achieved Shoku Warrior status, you will serve as their leader.”

Boris’ eyes widened and he quickly turned his head away from the other children and looked up to Omi. “Really?” he asked in shock.

“Yes. It is a great honor.” Omi informed with a proud smile. However, his smile vanished as he looked off into the distance and glared at seemingly nothing. “Something I’ve always wished for myself…” he grumbled. His eyes then widened and he looked to the children who were giving him weirded out looks. He coughed. “B-But it was not my fate. I have accepted that. Completely.”

“Yeah, sure.” Dojo commented. Omi brushed his shoulder, ‘accidentally’ knocking the dragon from his perch as he gave a yelp.

“Wait one moment.” Boris spoke up. “Why is brother Jack not coming with us on these quests? He has not yet achieved Shoku rank either.”

“NO WAY AM I RUNNING AROUND WITH A BUNCH OF LITTLE BABIES.” came the loud, shouted reply through the walls.

“ _Jack Spicer_ ,” Omi started loudly. “will reach his rank in other, more traditional ways. Through vigorous training and labor.”

A loud bang - like the sound of a chair falling over - was heard in another room and then fast, pounding footsteps rushed closer. Suddenly, the door to the Library was burst open and an outraged Jack appeared. At the slam of the door, the decorative waterfall in the corner of the room spluttered for a moment but continued its steady stream once again (that was Dojo’s inner-interior decorator’s choice - _“Ever hear of Feng Shui, kid?”_ ) 

“WHAT?!” Jack cried. “I take it back! I’ll go with them!”

Omi gave an unamused look and without turning around, stuck out a hand and rolled his wrist causing the waterfall to be dried up of all it’s water. The liquid gathered into a ball and floated in mid air. The children looked on in both amazement and confusion. Omi gave another flick of his wrist and suddenly the ball formed a long whip and snapped at Jack’s feet. The grown man gave a girlish cry as the whip wrapped around his foot and then picked him up and flung him from the room. There was the sound of a loud crash before the whip slammed the door closed once more and returned back to it’s source. The tiny waterfall continued to flow once more.

Each of the new trainees took a step or two away from their new Master, now understanding why this young, carefree-seeming man was the famed Dragon of the Water.

“Well!” Omi spoke cheerfully with a clap of his hands. “Let’s not waste any more time, shall we? There is an active Shen Gong Wu out there, after all. Dojo?”

Seemingly unphased at the change in attitude, Dojo slithered up to a small desk in the corner of the room and rolled out an ancient scroll. “Here we go, it’s the Eye of Dashi.” He paused, as if just recalling something. “Woah. Deja vu.” 

“The Eye of Dashi allows for the user to shoot concentrated blasts of lightning.” Omi informed, ignoring Dojo’s comment and feeling a large smile creep its way onto his face. The familiarity did not escape him. “It was one of Dashi’s favorites. Some even believe that it was his elemental Shen Gong Wu.”

“Neat.” Anna commented as the picture on the scroll animated to do the action Master Omi described. 

“Dojo will guide you there. I wish you luck, young monks.” Master Omi bowed.

“How’s tiny gonna get us anywhere?” Jose questioned. “He’s like a noodle.”

“‘Tiny’? ‘Noodle’?!” Dojo repeated in outrage. Suddenly, the dragon grew 20 times his size and filled the room. He got close to Jose and breathed a puff of smoke into his face.

“D-Did I say ‘tiny’?” the Hispanic boy stuttered out nervously. “No, no I meant big. Majestic even.”

“You also called him a noodle.” Anna commented (un)helpfully.

“N-No. No, I said, uh, beefy!” he grinned, looking about ready to bolt.

“Mmhm.” Dojo hummed before he quickly gathered up the children - who made surprised noises - and then flew out of the room.

Omi couldn’t help but smile fondly at the nostalgic feeling warming his chest as he watched his new students take the first step of their thousand-mile journey.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:  
> (All translations are made with an online translator. Please correct me if I am wrong)
> 
> Spanish:  
> “Hola” = “Hello”  
> “Habla por ti mismo…” = “Speak for yourself…”
> 
> Hindi:  
> Bindi = literal translation being ”point, drop or small particle’; it’s a red dot worn on the center of the forehead, commonly by Hindi or Jain women  
> “Namaste” = “Hello” (formal greeting)


	3. Formalities

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I drew and posted some character designs over on [my tumblr](https://wannab-cartoonist.tumblr.com/). You can view what my OCs and Boris look like in this story [here](https://wannab-cartoonist.tumblr.com/post/157879825504/the-ocs-ping-pong-designs-from-my-fic-about-the).
> 
> (If you notice some spelling mistakes when a certain characters is speaking, that's just me trying to write an accent).

The flight over to their destination was highly unsettling. Or rather, the conversation Boris had before was. 

For one thing, evil has awoken once more... 

Okay, but what exactly did that mean? Was Wuya out? Was Chase Young free? Hannibal Bean? Even Chase’s former lackey Shadow? Boris thought that the Dragons took care of all of them…How could they be awoken? ... Woke? ... Awake? 

He gets the whole balance thing, really he does. But exactly what caused the Shen Gong Wu to reactivate? And new Dragons? New _elements_. It was all very unnerving so as Boris and the other newly-instated monks flew to the Eye of Dashi's currently location, Boris couldn't help his grimace. 

“Uh, hey there, pal.” came the unsure greeting of the girl sitting behind Boris. He turned his body to get a better look at her. It was the Asian girl who spoke funny English. 

“Hello.” Boris greeted back, sounding hesitant. 

“Um, sourry to bother you but I realized I didn't get your name?” 

“Oh,” Boris found himself voicing aloud, hesitance forgotten at the genuine and open expression on the girl’s face - her name was Anna, he believed… “that is alright, Anna. My name is Boris.” 

Anna’s somewhat frightened look disappeared and was quickly replaced with one of relief. “Ah, okay, great. I'm Anna. But, you already know that because you said my name...” she mumbled, embarrassed. “Sourry. I'm just a little nervous. First day and all.” she breathed out with a bright smile. 

“No, no that is understandable.” Boris reassured, unwittingly finding himself become less cautious. This girl’s personality was quite warming, he must admit. 

Anna looked off to the side, looking as if she was contemplating saying something. In the end, it seemed she chose to speak her mind. “Hey, if it's not too much trouble or intrusive or anything, do you mind me asking where you’re from?” At Boris’ confused look, the girl quickly explained. “It's just, you've lived in the Temple for a long time from what I've heard and you sorta talk funny. Not like the other people from around there.”

“Oh,” Boris voiced again. He should really start making sure the first sounds emitting from his mouth formed a word. He sounded like a simpleton. “it’s alright. There's nothing wrong with a few formalities. I'm from France. Well, I've lived in many countries but I was raised in a French monastery.” 

“Wow, that's awesome! Like France-France?”

Boris blinked. “What other France is there…?”

Anna grinned a let out a nervous laugh. “Yeah, I guess that was a funny thing to ask…” she trailed off. "Sourry."

“It's okay,” Boris has said this a lot today, hasn't he? This girl apologized a lot… “Actually, if you do not mind my asking, where is it that you are from? You speak quite funnily for an American.”

Embarrassment seemingly forgotten, Anna brightened once more and met Boris’ eyes again. “Oh, no. I'm not an American. I'm actually from Canada.”

“Ah! _Parlez-vous français?_ ” he asked excitedly.

“Ehh, _non_. Not really, at least.” she said with a laugh. “I'm actually from Newfoundland and Labrador. The real French Canadians are mostly from Quebec. I used to take French in school but I'm pretty bad at it...”

“My apologies. I did not know that, but that is very interesting.” he commented. "The part where you're from. Not the part about your inability to speak French..."

She didn't seem to be offended by Boris' inadvertent insult as she let out a genuine laugh. "That's okay.” she beamed back at him. Then she suddenly turned her body to look at the boy behind her. “Well, what about you?”

He blinked. Then raised a brow. “What about me?” he questioned with a thick Hispanic accent.

“Where are you from?” she asked without missing a beat.

The boy - Jose, Boris recalled his name being - looked as if he wanted to say something along the lines of ‘buzz off’ but in the end apparently changed his mind. “Venezuela.” he simply answered. 

“Whereaboot?”

“No place you’d know.” he responded, hoping to ward off all further questions but Anna didn’t seem to get the hint as her expression was still completely open. With a roll of his eyes, Jose decided it’d be easier to just answer. “I live in the capital. Caracas.”

“Neat.” Anna commented. Anna then leaned out further to the side - causing Dojo a moment of worry over her balance - and looked past Jose to the younger girl sitting behind him. “What about you, Vaishnavi?”

The girl gave a start and quickly looked up. “Huh?” she eeped. “Me?”

“Yeah, you.” Anna laughed. “I can tell by your looks and your accent that you’re from India, but where exactly?”

“Oh.” she said, as if being included in the conversation was one of the most surprising things that could have happened. “Um, I’m from New Delhi…” the girl informed.

“Hey, I’ve actually heard of that place before! You guys do crazy cool dances, right?”

“Um, I guess…” Vaishnavi responded, looking uncomfortable.

Boris, feeling pity for the girl who seemed so out of her depth, coughed and spoke “Well, it's nice to formally become acquainted with you all.” he said, offering a small friendly smile.

Vaishnavi gave him a strange look. She didn't pull a funny face or anything, but just stared at him...strangely. Like she was looking at something past him but her eyes were directed at him. “But you are not happy to be with us.” she finally said bluntly.

This startled Boris - and the others, as Jose gave a curious look and Anna looked just as shocked as Boris felt. “ _Q-Que?_ ” he stuttered out.

Vaishnavi squinted her eyes at Boris, then looked away, as if trying to figure something out. She looked back to him. “You are happy to be searching for Shen Gong Wu once again but you are not happy that we are accompanying you.”

Anna gave Boris a hurt look, but seeming as if she were wishing it weren’t true. Jose crossed his arms, turned, and gave Boris a nasty look. “ _Que?_ ” he mimicked Boris from earlier, sounding quite hostile. Boris gulped.

“It’s not that you hate us or even dislike us, you’d just rather be with your old friends. The Xiaolin Dragons.” Vaishnavi quickly clarified. 

“Um, _oui_. That is correct...” Boris verified, dumbfounded. “H-How did you–”

“I read your Chi.” the Indian girl answered before he could finish. At the blank looks from her teammates, she continued. As she spoke, her voice got quieter and quieter and she meekly twiddled her thumbs. “Y-Your spiritual energy. It tells me certain things about you like your emotions and such. The rest I put together by myself. I know you and the Dragons used to be friends and go on these types of missions together so I figured you’d be upset not getting to do these things with them anymore…” she finished.

“T-That-” Boris choked out, finding his throat oddly dry. He cleared it and started again. “That’s very impressive.”

“Chi reading is a very rare skill.” Dojo finally spoke up, gaining the attention of his riders - who in all honestly forgot that their mode of transportation was sentient. “But it’s to be expected of the Dragon of Spirits to-be.”

“I've actually been meaning to inquire about that.” Boris admitted, turning back to face the others behind him. “What exactly can the Dragon of Spirits do?” 

Vaishnavi gave Boris a wide-eyed look - as if surprised to be questioned further - before averting her gaze and looking contemplative. “Well, I suppose the Dragon of Chi would be a better name seeing as I can see people's Chi. Though I suppose Chi are like spirits…”

“You said something about spiritual energy before.” Jose stated much to the surprise of Boris. Boris pegged him to not be the socializing type. His curiosity must be as piqued as his. “What exactly is Chi?”

“It's...spiritual energy? That's the only way I know how to describe it…” Vaishnavi trailed off with a blush. “I suppose the easiest way to say it would be I can see ghosts?” she finished, sounding unsure. 

Her teammates all gave her various surprised looks. Jose looked skeptical and Anna leaned in closer to Boris and whispered in an awestruck tone, “ _She can see dead people_.”

“I-It’s not just the souls of the deceased I can see.” Vaishnavi quickly assured. At Anna’s freaked out expression, a look of embarrassed horror crossed the Indian girl’s face. “Wait, that did not come out right…”

“Get back to the Chi talk, kiddo.” Dojo advised with a quick glance over his back to the girl. 

“Y-Yes…” Vaishnavi agreed meekly. “Like I said, I can read Chi. From a person’s Chi I can tell many things about them. Their moral alignment, their emotions. The Good Chi and Bad Chi look different, whether it's emotional or mental.”

“That’s actually pretty cool.” Jose commented. “All I can do is generate electricity. Watch.” he instructed before he then started to rub his hands together at a brisk pace and suddenly tiny sparks of yellow lightning started to wrap around his hands. He separated his hands but the glowing streaks remained. He then poked the monk who was closest to him, which happened to be Anna.

There was an audible _ZAP_ as Anna jerked. For many moments her teammates - excluding Jose - looked at her with a surprised expression, mostly in shocked horror at Jose’s audacity. Suddenly, Anna’s short hair slowly rose up, strand by strand, until all her hairs were standing on end, giving her an even crazier hair style. The Canadian’s dazed expression then morphed into one of pure amusement.

“That. Was. _Awesome!_ ” she cried, looking just as crazy as she sounded. “It was like that feeling you get when you’re in bed and like half asleep and you imagine yourself jumping and suddenly your legs jerk, but like a gazillion times more real feeling!”

Boris and Vaishnavi both stared at Anna in utter perplexity before turning their gazes to Jose, who held an unalarmed expression. 

“I can only generate small amounts at will and they’re never damaging. Whenever I do the crazy stuff it happens randomly.” he shrugged nonchalantly, looking away.

Vaishnavi had a fascinated look on her face while Boris seemed unimpressed, not at the ability but the way it was demonstrated. “That would have been nice to know _before_ I thought you fried our teammate’s brain…”

“But that is very interesting.” Vaishnavi commented. “Perhaps your abilities are linked to your emotions?” she pondered, sounding as if she were thinking out loud.

Jose shrugged once more. “I dunno.” he simply responded. “Could be.”

“W-Well in the future, I suggest more caution!” Boris exclaimed, finding his voice raising to his own inner shock. The tone wasn’t necessarily one of rage, more frustrated really over the lack of regard for safety. But still, he never raised his voice…“Until you all understand your powers better, it’s best to use restraint. There’s no telling of the damage you can cause.”

Jose rolled his eyes and crossed his arms. “Whatever, _pequeño_.”

Boris found himself emitting a low groan - almost like a growl - at the comment but forced himself to calm down. He was the leader, he couldn’t just lose his temper. He took a breath.

“B-But, well we can still practice using them.” he started nervously upon seeing his teammates’ upset expressions at being told not to use their powers. “But cautiously. In controlled situations.” he finished more strictly.

While Jose rolled his eyes again and Vaishnavi gave a nod, Anna burst into a large grin. “Awesome! I was a little bummed since I didn’t get to show my stuff, y’know but I’m still kinda a novice at it but I think I can get better at it, with practice of course.” she said so fast that even Boris had a little trouble understanding for a moment.

“Yes, that’s good but–”

“Look alive, kids!” Dojo suddenly exclaimed, cutting Boris off. “We’re here.” the dragon announced as he made a descent to the earth below them, causing all the kids to hold on tight.

When they finally touched down on the damp soil, Dojo shrunk in size and curled up around Boris’ shoulders and the children scanned their surroundings. They were at a lake area and everyone found their shoes getting soaked and caked with mud. It wasn’t a very busy area but there were quite a few too-many people around to be a deserted location. There were fishermen working, children playing, and vendors selling various goods, despite the small amount of fog.

“Where are we?” Anna asked aloud.

The other monks looked around, not exactly sure. As Dojo was about to answer, Jose spoke. “Lake Maracaibo…” he muttered to himself. At the others’ confused expressions, he elaborated. “I used to visit here with my family. We’re in Venezuela.”

“Wow, what are the odds, eh?” Anna commented with a nudge to Jose. 

Jose gave the Canadian an annoyed look but continued to look around. “It’s a fishing village.” he informed. “But people still come here to vacation or visit the markets.”

"There's a lot of life in this place..." Vaishnavi said, as if she were thinking aloud.

"Yeah, it's pretty nice here sometimes I guess, so people like coming here." Jose responded anyway.

“We have no time to see the sights.” Boris spoke. “We must find the Eye of Dashi before it falls into the wrong hands.”

“Like those hands?” Anna asked, raising her arm in a 180 degree angle out in front of herself and pointing at something ahead of her. Everyone turned their heads and followed her gesture only to see the Eye of Dashi dangling from the hands of a rough looking man surrounded by others of the same demeanor, all laughing unnervingly at something. It was then that the others noticed that all movement in the village had stopped and everyone was either glancing at the group of men in fear or hastily trying to mind their own business.

“Yes.” Boris sighed, wishing he could change his battle-ready stance into a slouch. “Those would be the wrong hands.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Translations:  
> (All translations are made with an online translator. Please inform me of any corrections that need to be made.)
> 
> French:  
> “Parlez-vous français?” = “Do you speak French?”  
> “Non.” = “No.”  
> “Qui.” = “Yes.”
> 
> Spanish:  
> “Que?” = “What?”  
> “Pequeño.” = “Tiny.”

**Author's Note:**

> Translations:  
> (All are done with an online translator. Please let me know if any are incorrect)
> 
> French:  
> " _Quelle?_ " = "What?"
> 
> Chinese:  
> "Shifu" = "Master"


End file.
